The Studios are one of two major film studios that do not currently offer backlot tours to the general public, the other being 20th Century Fox. For several years, Adventures by Disney has offered tours of the studio, but only as an integral component of their six-day, five-night, Southern California tour package. The other way to tour the studio is to join the official Disney D23 fan club, which offers tours to members every few months. The studio used to open to the public once a year in November on the Saturday before Thanksgiving for its annual Magical Holiday Faire craft sale, but stopped hosting the Faire around 2003. As an aid to visitors, many buildings on the Disney lot are currently marked with identifying signs that include historical information and trivia about each site.

Prior to the official opening of the Burbank lot in 1940, the Walt Disney Studios was situated at several different locations in Los Angeles. During summer 1923, Walt Disney created "The Disney Bros. Cartoon Studio" in his uncle Robert Disney's garage, which was located at 4406 Kingswell Avenue, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles (just east of Hollywood). This garage has been on display at the Stanley Ranch Museum in Garden Grove since the 1980s, several blocks away from Disneyland.[3] His brother Roy O. Disney was also in Los Angeles at the time. During October 1923, the brothers leased office space on the rear side of a real estate agency's office at 4651 Kingswell Avenue. On October 16, 1923, Walt Disney accepted an offer from Margaret Winkler of Universal Studios to distribute the new Alice Comedies starring Virginia Davis. It was also at this site where on January 14, 1924, Walt Disney met his future wife Lillian Bounds, an "ink and paint" girl whom he personally hired. In February 1924, the studio moved next door to an office of its own at 4649 Kingswell Avenue. The late Robert Disney's residence and the small office building that is home to 4649 and 4651 Kingswell Avenue have survived to the present and are still in use.

In 1925, Walt Disney placed a deposit on a new, considerably larger lot at 2719 Hyperion Avenue, and the studio moved there in January 1926. It was here where, after a train journey with his wife Lillian, Walt fully created the character of Mickey Mouse in 1928. Here, too, the first color animated film, the Silly SymphonyFlowers and Trees, and the first animated cartoon using the multiplane camera, The Old Mill, were created. In 1937, the Hyperion studio produced the world's first full-length animated feature film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Disney's staff began to grow to a substantial size at the Hyperion studio, and Disney Legends such as Disney's Nine Old Men began their careers there. The Hyperion studio site was sold in 1940 and divided between two different industrial manufacturers, and in 1966 a subsequent owner demolished what was left of the studio complex and replaced it with the supermarket and shopping center that stand there today. To honor the company's former headquarters from 1926 to 1940, the name 'Hyperion' has been reused over the years by the Walt Disney Company for multiple divisions and attractions, including Hyperion Books and the Hyperion Theater at Disney California Adventure Park.

The original entrance gate to Walt Disney Studios at 500 South Buena Vista Street in Burbank, California.

The current Walt Disney Studios, located at 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, was made possible by the revenue from the 1937 release of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.[4]Walt Disney and his staff began the move from the old studio at Hyperion Avenue in Silver Lake from December 1939 to January 1940. Designed primarily by Kem Weber under the supervision of Walt Disney and his brother Roy, the Burbank Disney Studio buildings are the only studios that have been owned by The Walt Disney Company to survive from the Golden Age of filming. A bungalow and other small buildings that were located at the Hyperion Avenue location were moved to Burbank.

Disney purposely planned his new Burbank studio around the animation process. The large Animation Building stood in the center of the campus, while adjacent outlying buildings were constructed for the ink-and-paint departments, the camera and editing departments, and the other various functions of the studio. Underground tunnels linked some of the buildings, and the lot also included a movie theatre, a sound stage, and a commissary. The 1941 Disney feature The Reluctant Dragon, which combined live action with animated sequences and starred Robert Benchley, served as a tour of the then-new studio. It was later frequently seen and toured on the various Disney television programs.

In the late 1940s, the studio began regular work on live-action features, as they needed the money. Though their first films were shot in England, the necessity to build live-action facilities still arose. Lacking the capital to do it themselves, Jack Webb offered to put up some of the money to build live-action soundstages in exchange for the right to use them (Webb used them to shoot much of the Dragnet TV series). During this time, backlots for exterior shots were also built and remained standing at the studios until after a major change in management in 1984.

In 1986, after the corporate restructuring of Walt Disney Productions into The Walt Disney Company, the studio lot was remodeled to accommodate more live-action production space and administrative offices. The studio lot is now home to multiple office and administration buildings and 10 soundstages. It is bounded by South Buena Vista Street on the west, West Alameda Street on the north, South Keystone Street on the east, and West Riverside Drive on the south. It sits in an area of Burbank where the street grid is offset at a diagonal, but most of the original buildings and roads within the campus itself were laid out in alignment with the cardinal directions.

Disney chairman Michael Eisner had the Team Disney building constructed in 1990.[4] In 1992, Disney had gained city approval for its expansion master plan, which included the Riverside Building. The Riverside Building, located next to Feature Animation Building at 2300 Riverside Drive, opened in 2000 for ABC executives and employees.[5]

Formerly known as the Team Disney Burbank building, Team Disney – The Michael D. Eisner Building is the main building located at The Walt Disney Studios. Completed in 1990 and designed by Michael Graves, the Team Disney Burbank building contains the office of President and CEO Robert A. Iger, as well as the boardroom for the board of directors. It also houses offices for members of Senior Management, such as Alan Horn, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios and Andy Bird, chairman of Walt Disney International. Prior to the opening of the Team Disney Burbank building in 1990, Disney executives were located in the old Animation building and the Roy O. Disney Building; the animators had been forced to relocate in 1985 into a series of warehouses, trailers, and hangars in nearby Glendale.

The Team Disney structure is sometimes called the "Seven Dwarfs Building". It has large sculpted caryatids of the Seven Dwarfs holding up the roof of the eastern façade, an homage to the animated film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which provided Walt Disney with the revenue to purchase the Burbank lot. Each statue is 19 feet (5.7 meters) tall, with the exception of the 2/3-sized Dopey at top.[4] The building is located opposite the Frank G. Wells building, named for Eisner's former colleague, and President of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 to 1994. In 1996 the building was featured in Hollywood Pictures film Spy Hard. On January 23, 2006, in honor of Michael Eisner's 21-year leadership of the company, the Team Disney building was rededicated as Team Disney – The Michael D. Eisner Building.

Located on the pillars in the plaza are bronze plaques featuring receivers of the Disney Legends award. The plaques feature the recipient's name, reason for gaining the award, and the person's hand prints and signature if they were alive at the time they received the award. Most famously, Legendary Animator and Imagineer, Ward Kimball's plaque features an extra finger, a reminder of Kimball's sense of humor. If, however, the award was presented posthumously, an image of the Disney Legends statue is engraved instead of the traditional hand prints and signature.

The plaza formerly featured a small fountain to honor the Legends, but that was since removed due to water leakage.

The five-story building has a usable area of 240,518 square feet (22,344.9 m2) with three underground parking levels, accommodating 600 parking spaces. The construction was completed in two phases: phase I in August 1997 and phase II in July 1998. The Frank G. Wells building was specifically designed for Walt Disney Television Animation, and the division formerly had offices located on the third floor. The division has since moved to the Grand Central Creative Campus in nearby Glendale, California.

It is distinctly recognizable through its giant movie reel and film strip on the building's exterior. The building is currently home to the Walt Disney Archives, studio mail center, Marvel Studios, the Disney Music Group, a screening room, various multipurpose rooms, and one of the three extant multiplane cameras (which is on display in the lobby). It was formerly home to Walt Disney Television, various management offices, and the human resources department.

The Archives are located on the ground floor and are open to all cast members; they also have additional storage and restricted areas on other floors. The Studio's Starbucks Coffee shop is also located on the ground floor.

Suite 3H, on the third floor of the Animation Building's H-Wing, was Walt's headquarters. The five-room space included his two adjacent offices: a "formal" corner office for signing contracts and meeting with important visitors, and a "working office" where he huddled with key staff to develop ideas for his films, television shows and theme parks. The latter had a kitchenette hidden behind wood paneling that retracted at the touch of a button, as Walt often ate lunch at his desk.[9] Also in the suite was his secretary's office, featuring displays of his numerous awards, and a lounge area where Walt would relax after 5:00 pm with a drink (Scotch Mist was his cocktail of choice) and a back massage from the studio nurse before going home.[10][11] Walt's suite was closed after his death in 1966 and not reused until 1970, after his personal items had been carefully archived. Over the years these items were used in museum exhibits recreating his offices, primarily at Disney resorts. In 2015, under the auspices of the Walt Disney Archives, Suite 3H was restored as closely as possible to the condition in which Walt left it, with many of the original furnishings and objects. Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger dedicated the restoration on December 7 of that year. In 2016 it was opened for viewing by studio employees, special guests, and gold members of the Disney fan club D23.[12][13][14]

A little-known feature of the Animation Building was its private rooftop annex, The Penthouse Club, a perk for male employees who could afford its membership fees. It had a gymnasium run by a full-time athletic instructor, a bar, a barber shop, steam baths, massage tables, pool and poker tables, and an outdoor patio which members tended to use for nude sunbathing.[15] The entrance displayed a mural painted by animator Fred Moore depicting a bevy of nude or semi-nude women, surrounding a drunken single man bearing a certain resemblance to Moore himself.[16] By the early 1960s the gym activities had ceased and it became a casual lounge for studio veterans. The Penthouse space has been shuttered for years and the Fred Moore mural removed to an unknown location.[15]

The basement housed the Test Camera Department, which shot test loops of animation drawings in progress. Animators and directors would view these loops on Moviola machines to check the work before submitting it to Ink and Paint.[17]

A utility tunnel linked the Animation Building with the neighboring Ink and Paint Building and the Camera and Cutting departments. It was built to ensure that the original animation drawings and painted cels could be safely transported from one location to another without being exposed to bad weather or other outside elements.[18][19] The tunnel is still maintained and a length of it is open to D23 tours.

A popular point of interest for studio visitors is "Pluto's Corner", outside the Animation Building's A-Wing at the southwestern end of the block. There one can see three paw prints embedded in the street, curbside beneath a fire hydrant. A hind paw print is missing, humorously suggesting that Pluto used the hydrant to mark his territory.[20] Nearby is the often-photographed signpost indicating the site's location at the corner of Mickey Avenue and Dopey Drive, with directions to various studio departments as they existed in Walt's era. (Today only the street names remain the same). According to longtime Disney archivist Dave Smith, the street sign – the only one of its kind on the Disney lot – was installed as a temporary prop for the "Studio Tour" segment of the Disney feature The Reluctant Dragon (1941) and never removed.[21][22]

In 1985, during production of The Great Mouse Detective (released in 1986),[7] Disney's Animation Department was moved off the Burbank lot into a cluster of old hangars, warehouses, and trailers located about two miles east (3.2 km) in Glendale, at the former site of the Grand Central Airport. Prior to the opening of the Team Disney Burbank building in 1990, Disney executives used the Animation Building as corporate offices. In 1995, animation production moved back to Burbank across the street from the main studios with the opening of the Walt Disney Feature Animation Building. Today, the original Animation Building is used primarily to house offices for various film and television producers who have distribution deals with Disney. Its exterior was a primary location for the 2013 film Saving Mr. Banks, though the interiors (including Walt's offices) were recreated at an outside studio.[23]

Completed in 1939 at a cost of $300,000, the Water Tower was one of the first structures to emerge at the new Disney studio.[8] It stands 135.6 feet (41.3 meters) high and originally held 150,000 gallons of water.[24] Towers such as these provided an emergency water supply in case of fire and were a standard feature of major Hollywood studios of the era, examples of which can still be seen at the Warner Bros., Paramount and Sony Pictures Studios (formerly MGM) lots. Roy Disney, however, insisted that the Disney Studio's water tower be built with six legs instead of the usual four, claiming it was more aesthetically pleasing.[24]

The tower is no longer used for water storage and stands as an identifying symbol of Disney's Burbank studio. In 1984 the top portion of the holding tank was painted white and, for the first time, emblazoned with the image of Mickey Mouse, the official mascot of the Walt Disney Company.[24] It was the model for the Earffel Tower which stood at Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park near Orlando, Florida from 1989 to 2016, and the replica at Walt Disney Studios Park in Disneyland Paris (2002 to the present),[25] though the original has never been decorated with Mickey Mouse ears on top.

The Roy O. Disney building is located next to the animation building and held the office of Roy O. Disney to whom the building is dedicated. The building used to be the main administration building on the studio lot prior to the opening of the Team Disney – The Michael D. Eisner building. Today, it is home to Disney's legal department.

Stage 1 was completed between 1939 and 1940 and is the original Disney soundstage on the Burbank lot. The soundstage was designed to replace a smaller stage at the former Hyperion Avenue Studio. Although The Walt Disney Studios predominantly made animated films, the soundstage was built in order to film Leopold Stokowski's segments in the 1940 film Fantasia. During World War II, the stage was used for repairing army vehicles. The soundstage was formerly dedicated to Fantasia, for it being the first motion picture that was filmed in the building. The stage is the smallest on the lot at 11,000 sq ft. It features a 2400 sq ft underwater tank and is still in active use. On June 24, 2013, it was dedicated to MousketeerAnnette Funicello as it was the original shooting stage for The Mickey Mouse Club.[26]

Constructed from 1947 and opening in April 1949, Stage 2 is the second oldest soundstage on the Walt Disney Studios lot, and at 31,000 feet (9,400 m), one of the largest in Los Angeles. It was built and financed between a joint agreement between Walt Disney and director Jack Webb, who used the stage for the filming of the television series Dragnet. In October 1955, Stage 2 began production on the first series of The Mickey Mouse Club. From 1954 to 1955 and prior to the opening of the facilities at Glendale California, WED Enterprises (now Walt Disney Imagineering) occupied soundstage 2 to build multiple attractions for Disneyland, including the Mark Twain Riverboat. Since then Stage 2 has been used for filming of multiple attractions for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

During the filming of Armageddon the filmmakers discovered the 40 feet high tall stage was not tall enough to hold one of the "asteroid" seen in the film. The floor was removed and an additional 20 feet was dug down to accommodate the 360-degree set for the scene. In 2001, soundstage 2 was dedicated to English actress Julie Andrews, because parts of Mary Poppins and parts of the then-current filming of The Princess Diaries took place inside this particular soundstage.

Stage 3 was completed in 1953 and designed especially for the film 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. The stage is 19,000 sq ft and contains an operational 3600 sq ft water tank that is divided into two parts for underwater and special effects filming.

The tank area was also used heavily beginning in the 1960s as Disney pioneered the use of the sodium screen process. In the 1970s stage 3 was equipped with the first computerized motion control system. The ACES (Animated Camera Effects System) was designed by Disney engineers and broke new ground with technology which has become one of the foundations of current special effects photography.

Stage 4, which was completed in 1958, was first used for Darby O'Gill and the Little People. Upon completing 30 years of service in 1998, Stage 4 was divided into two new television studios, creating the new Stage 4 and Stage 5. Stage 4 is known as the "Home Improvement stage", as that series was filmed here from 1991 to 1999. Stage 4 is currently inhabited by Black-ish.

Stages 6 and 7, built in 1997 are the newest soundstages at the Walt Disney Studios. These audience-rated stages provide comprehensive production support with computer-controlled access, high-volume air-conditioning, and adjoining production support building. They are built on the former back-lot and are located behind the Frank G. Wells Building. Both stages are 15,000 square feet (1,400 m2) each and are in frequent use at the studios. Popular productions here have included, My Wife and Kids, The Muppets, 8 Simple Rules For Dating My Teenage Daughter, The Geena Davis Show, and Brothers and Sisters.

The Bungalow was built in 1935 as the original home of the Disney Publicity and Comic Strip Departments. It was constructed at the Disney Studios on Hyperion Avenue in Hollywood and moved to the Burbank location as part of the construction process in 1939–1940. At the Disney Burbank lot, the building housed many support services over the years. Payroll, Publicity Support, Traffic and finally the Post Office were located in the building. The structure is the last remaining example of the "California Bungalow" type architecture that remains from the Hyperion studio facility. Its attractive style and utility, dating back to the early years of the company, give it a special place in the history of the Disney lot.

The 419-seat Theater,[27] another original building on the Burbank lot, shows first-run Disney films for studio employees and guests. It has plush stadium seating and has been upgraded over the years to keep pace with new technology in the exhibition of films. Food and drink are not allowed inside.

Throughout its history, the theater has also been used for post-production sound mixing. According to the Disney production services website, "The Main Theater is a state-of-the-art digital sound dubbing and screening facility that was first used to mix the sound for Fantasia [in 1940]. Sound mixers blend dialogue, music, and sound effects tracks to the various levels appropriate for a movie theater. The acoustics are designed to simulate a theater that is three-quarters full. Although the theater is empty during the mixing session, extra padding in the seats and specially designed walls absorb and reflect the sound. This helps the sound mixers to know what the final product will sound like when it is released to the public."[28]

The signage above the entrance says simply "Theatre". The name "Main Theater" is used to distinguish the venue from several smaller screening rooms situated throughout the studio. In Walt's era these were called "sweatboxes", where animation test reels and the daily rushes of his live-action features were shown for his approval.[29][30]

The 1940 Ink and Paint Building was where animators' drawings were inked onto transparent cels and then the cels were painted. It was built with high ceilings and a sophisticated central ventilation system so that the staff members would not be overcome by toxic paint fumes. One section was used as a special paint-mixing laboratory to provide Disney cartoons with the widest possible spectrum of colors. Three interior courtyards provided northern light for the artists and also served as outdoor break areas. It was a self-contained structure with its own cafeteria, lounge, and rooftop sundeck.[31]

The sequestered layout reflected workplace attitudes of the era. As was common in the American animation industry of Disney's day, the Ink and Paint departments were staffed exclusively by women. In the early 1940s Disney employed over 100 "ink and paint girls" at a starting salary of $18 a week, as opposed to $300 a week for experienced animators. A Disney employment brochure of the time stated: "Women do not do any of the creative work in connection with preparing the cartoons for the screen, as that work is performed entirely by young men...The only work open to women consists of tracing the characters on clear celluloid sheets with India ink and filling in the tracings on the reverse side with paint according to directions."[32] Men and women at the Disney studio were not encouraged to fraternize, and the cloistered atmosphere of the Ink and Paint Building led wags on the lot to call it "The Nunnery."[32][33]

The basement of the Ink and Paint Building was the location of Disney's famous "Morgue",[34] where artwork from the studio's films was stored for possible future use.[35] In a 1957 episode of his Disneyland TV series, Walt took viewers into the Morgue and, after some ghoulish fun on the room's name, explained its real function.[36] In 1989 this archival material was moved to its current location at the Disney Animation Research Library in Glendale, California.[37]

Technological advances in animation, such as the advent of Xerography in the early 1960s and the development of CAPS in the late 1980s, ultimately made traditional ink and paint techniques obsolete at the Disney studio. The last Disney animated feature to employ inked and painted cels was The Little Mermaid (1989).[38] Today the Ink and Paint Building is primarily used for office space, though its original paint-mixing lab has been preserved and is used for the creation of limited edition Disney artwork created on-site.[39][40]

The Camera Building, built in 1940, was where animation backgrounds and cels were traditionally photographed onto film. Unique original features were the "de-dusting chambers" that personnel, painted cels and other materials had to pass through before entering, so no trace of dust or lint would show up in the photography.[41] In 1941 it housed two multiplane cameras, each standing 12 feet (3.6 meters) high and occupying its own room, and two conventional camera set-ups.[41] A third multiplane camera was subsequently constructed.

Since 1990 the Camera Building has been occupied by what is now Buena Vista Imaging, which provides photo-optical and digital imaging services for films and television.[42]

A 1937 image of Walt Disney (with figurines of the Seven Dwarfs) in his office at the former Hyperion studio. The office later became part of the Shorts Building on the Burbank lot

The two-story Shorts Building is one of the most significant remnants of Disney's former Hyperion studio. It originally consisted of two buildings, constructed in 1934 and 1937, to accommodate the company's rapidly expanding animation department. The 1934 structure was called the "Animation Building No. 2" and Walt and Roy Disney had their offices there prior to the move to Burbank.[43][8] The animation for scores of Disney shorts of the 1930s, including The Band Concert (1935) and the Oscar-winning The Old Mill (1937), was created in this complex, and it was here that Walt hatched his risky idea for America's first full-length animated feature, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937).

In 1939 the two buildings were disassembled, transported to Disney's new Burbank lot, and reconstructed as a single T-shaped edifice, with the addition of a loading dock. (The window of Walt's old second-floor office can be seen directly above the dock).[24] The colloquial name "Shorts Building" was apparently a nod to its historical past, as no further animation would be done on the premises. Since its relocation the building has served the studio in support capacities, housing the publicity, comic strip, foreign relations, hair and makeup, and wardrobe fitting departments. The lot's Studio Operations department is now located here.[24]

As noted above, in 1985, Disney Animation was moved out of the studio lot and into a cluster of old buildings in Glendale. During Michael Eisner's 1986 restructuring of The Walt Disney Company, the studio's animation division was spun off to officially create Walt Disney Feature Animation as a separate subsidiary of the company, and in 1995 it came back to Burbank when its new home opened.

The new studio is a colorful architectural landmark, adorned by a giant version of the Fantasia Sorcerer's hat, which once housed the office of Roy Disney, former head of Walt Disney Animation Studios. It also displays the word "ANIMATION" on giant letters on its south side to passersby on the Ventura Freeway.

In 2009, following the death of Roy Disney, the building was renamed and rededicated in his honor by Disney president and CEO, Bob Iger.

The ABC Studios building on the Walt Disney Studios Riverside Drive property in Burbank, California. The blue pedestrian overpass seen in the lower left connects it to the larger Buena Vista lot.

After Disney's purchase of ABC in 1996, a new headquarters for the television network was constructed across Riverside Drive next to the Walt Disney Feature Animation Building. The ABC building was designed by Aldo Rossi and is connected to the lot by a blue serpentine bridge that crosses over Riverside Drive. The ABC building also houses the offices of other subsidiaries such as ABC Studios and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

A two-story 17,000 square foot facility dedicated to post-production utilities and other, similar technical services. Opened in December 2012, the center is the home of Disney Digital Studio Services.[45]

This private cafeteria and grill opened in 1940 as Walt Disney's Studio Restaurant, and is now named the Buena Vista Café. Along with Stage 1 and the Main Theater, it is one of the few original buildings on the Burbank lot still serving its initial purpose. The commissary offers breakfast and lunch options for studio employees and guests, with indoor and outdoor seating. It once had an executive dining area called the Coral Room where Walt Disney occasionally lunched.[9] Walt's favorite dish, chili served with crackers,[46] is kept on the menu.

There is a newer commissary at the ABC Studios Building, across from the main Disney lot on Riverside Drive in Burbank.

^Walt Disney met his wife Lillian when he hired her as an ink & paint girl in 1924.

^In Disney's time "morgue" was also a journalistic term for a repository of old newspaper copy that could be referenced in the future, and it was in this spirit that he named his archives. See Keith Mahne, "The Story of Walt Disney's Morgue", Disney Avenue, June 28, 2015, retrieved 08–18–16 at http://www.disneyavenue.com/2015/06/the-story-of-disneys-morgue.html

1.
The Walt Disney Company
–
The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney, is an American diversified multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate, headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California. It is the second largest media conglomerate in terms of revenue. Disney was founded on October 16,1923 – by brothers Walt Disney, the company also operated under the names The Walt Disney Studio and then Walt Disney Productions. Taking on its current name in 1986, it expanded its operations and also started divisions focused upon theater, radio, music, publishing. In addition, Disney has since created corporate divisions in order to more mature content than is typically associated with its flagship family-oriented brands. The company is best known for the products of its studio, Walt Disney Studios. Disneys other three divisions are Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Disney Media Networks, and Disney Consumer Products. The company has been a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average since May 6,1991, Mickey Mouse, an early and well-known cartoon creation of the company, is a primary symbol and mascot for Disney. In early 1923, Kansas City, Missouri, animator Walt Disney created a film entitled Alices Wonderland. After the bankruptcy in 1923 of his previous firm, Laugh-O-Gram Studios, Disney moved to Hollywood to join his brother, Walt and Roy Disney formed Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio that same year. More animated films followed after Alice, in January 1926, with the completion of the Disney studio on Hyperion Street, the Disney Brothers Studios name was changed to the Walt Disney Studio. The distributor owned Oswald, so Disney only made a few hundred dollars, Disney completed 26 Oswald shorts before losing the contract in February 1928, due to a legal loophole, when Winklers husband Charles Mintz took over their distribution company. After failing to take over the Disney Studio, Mintz hired away four of Disneys primary animators to start his own animation studio, Snappy Comedies. In 1928, to recover from the loss of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Disney came up with the idea of a character named Mortimer while on a train headed to California. The mouse was later renamed Mickey Mouse and starred in several Disney produced films, ub Iwerks refined Disneys initial design of Mickey Mouse. Disneys first sound film Steamboat Willie, a cartoon starring Mickey, was released on November 18,1928 through Pat Powers distribution company and it was the first Mickey Mouse sound cartoon released, but the third to be created, behind Plane Crazy and The Gallopin Gaucho. Disney used Pat Powers Cinephone system, created by Powers using Lee De Forests Phonofilm system, Steamboat Willie premiered at B. S. Mosss Colony Theater in New York City, now The Broadway Theatre. Disneys Plane Crazy and The Galloping Gaucho were then retrofitted with synchronized sound tracks, Disney continued to produce cartoons with Mickey Mouse and other characters, and began the Silly Symphonies series with Columbia Pictures signing on as Symphonies distributor in August 1929

2.
Burbank, California
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Burbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States,12 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. The population at the 2010 census was 103,340, Entertainment, Nickelodeon Animation Studios, NBC, Cartoon Network Studios with the West Coast branch of Cartoon Network, and Insomniac Games. The city is home to Bob Hope Airport. Burbank consists of two areas, a downtown/foothill section, in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains. Burbank is the easternmost city in the San Fernando Valley, Burbanks neighbor, Glendale, is the westernmost city in the San Gabriel Valley. The city was referred to as Beautiful Downtown Burbank on Laugh-In, the city was named after David Burbank, a New Hampshire-born dentist and entrepreneur who established a sheep ranch there in 1867. Historically, this area was the scene of a skirmish which resulted in the unseating of the Spanish Governor of California. Remnants of the battle reportedly were found many years later in the vicinity of Warner Bros. Studio when residents dug up cannonballs, by 1876, the San Fernando Valley became the largest wheat-raising area in Los Angeles County. But the droughts of the 1860s and 1870s underlined the need for water supplies. A professionally trained dentist, Dr. Burbank began his career in Waterville and he joined the great migration westward in the early 1850s and, by 1853 was living in San Francisco. At the time the American Civil War broke out he was well established in his profession as a dentist in Pueblo de Los Angeles. In 1867, he purchased Rancho La Providencia from David W. Alexander and Francis Mellus, Dr. Burbanks property reached nearly 9,200 acres at a cost of $9,000. Dr. Burbank wouldnt acquire full titles to both properties until after a decision known as the Great Partition was made in 1871 dissolving the Rancho San Rafael. Dr. Burbank also later owned the Burbank Theatre, which opened on November 27,1893, though the theater was intended to be an opera house, instead it staged plays and became known nationally. The theatre featured famous actors of the time including Fay Bainter and Marjorie Rambeau, when the area that became Burbank was settled in the 1870s and 1880s, the streets were aligned along what is now Olive Avenue, the road to the Cahuenga Pass and downtown Los Angeles. These were largely the roads the Indians traveled and the settlers took their produce down to Los Angeles to sell. At the time, the primary long-distance transportation methods available to San Fernando Valley residents were stagecoach, stagecoaching between Los Angeles and San Francisco through the Valley began in 1858

3.
D23 (Disney)
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D23 is the official fan club for The Walt Disney Company. Founded in 2009, the organization is mainly for its biennial exposition event. The name D23 refers to D for Disney and 23 for 1923—the year Walt Disney founded the company, membership includes Disney twenty-three, yearly gifts, events, exclusive merchandise offers, and discount and early access to the D23 Expo fan convention. D23 was introduced on March 10,2009 by Robert Iger during the annual meeting. D23 had a booth at San Diego Comic-Con in 2009 followed by the first D23 Expo on September 10–13,2009, in March 2010, D23 announced that the expo would be biannual instead of annual with a Destination D event in the off year. In February 2013, the Walt Disney Company Japan announced the first D23 Expo Japan on October 12–14,2013, events include, D23 Expo biennial Destination D a smaller biennial event alternating with the Expo. Events were held in the D23 Arena, Stage 23, Storytellers Theatre, the D23 Expo returned for its second time at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on August 19–21,2011. The Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives has expanded by 12,000 square feet since the Inaugural D23 Expo, shopping opportunities include the D23 Expo Dream Store returning from the Inaugural Expo. Other stores include A Small World Village and a Disney Store in the Disney Living Pavilion. Events took place at the D23 Arena, Stage 23, Stage 28, the red carpet at the Talent Round-Up area, Storytellers Stage at the Disney Living pavilion, and at the Disney Channel/Radio Disney stage. The Disney Channel stage held performances from Coco Jones, China Anne McClain, a first look for Radio Disneys N. B. T. and a karate exhibition from Leo Howard. Guests also had the chance to meet and greet the cast of Good Luck Charlie, Jake, phineas and Ferb, Kickin It, Fish Hooks, A. N. T. Farm, Handy Manny, Special Agent Oso, Pair of Kings, nice, and the celebration for the 25th Anniversary of Pixar Animation Studios. The first rounds of the UDTT were held on August 18,2011 which narrowed from thousands to one hundred and it was hosted by Dan Roebuck who narrowed down the final round from 20 people to 3. After two full days of trivia questions, John Kurowski was declared the winner of the inaugural Ultimate Disney Fan Trivia Tournament and his name was engraved on a Ludwig Von Drake trophy which was preserved in the Walt Disney Archives. Kurowski also won a cruise on the Disney Cruise Lines Disney Fantasy ship which set sail to the public in 2012. The D23 Arena hosted many milestone events only at the D23 Expo and this is the second time that the Disney Legends Ceremony has taken place in front of guests at the D23 Expo. This tradition started in 1987 and since then,287 people have been awarded, at the expo, the company honored 12 people who contributed to the The Walt Disney Company

4.
Thanksgiving
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Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday celebrated in Canada, in the United States, in some of the Caribbean islands and in Liberia. It was originally celebrated as a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest, similarly named festival holidays occur in Germany and Japan. Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday of October in Canada and on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States, although Thanksgiving has historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, it has long been celebrated as a secular holiday as well. Prayers of thanks and special thanksgiving ceremonies are common among almost all religions after harvests, the Thanksgiving holidays history in North America is rooted in English traditions dating from the Protestant Reformation. It also has aspects of a harvest festival, even though the harvest in New England occurs well before the date on which the modern Thanksgiving holiday is celebrated. Before 1536 there were 95 Church holidays, plus 52 Sundays, the 1536 reforms reduced the number of Church holidays to 27, but some Puritans wished to completely eliminate all Church holidays, including Christmas and Easter. The holidays were to be replaced by specially called Days of Fasting or Days of Thanksgiving, unexpected disasters or threats of judgement from on high called for Days of Fasting. Special blessings, viewed as coming from God, called for Days of Thanksgiving, for example, Days of Fasting were called on account of drought in 1611, floods in 1613, and plagues in 1604 and 1622. Days of Thanksgiving were called following the victory over the Spanish Armada in 1588, an unusual annual Day of Thanksgiving began in 1606 following the failure of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605 and developed into Guy Fawkes Day on November 5. Some researchers state that there is no compelling narrative of the origins of the Canadian Thanksgiving day, the origins of Canadian Thanksgiving are also sometimes traced to the French settlers who came to New France in the 17th century, who celebrated their successful harvests. The French settlers in the area typically had feasts at the end of the harvest season and continued throughout the winter season, as settlers arrived in Nova Scotia from New England after 1700, late autumn Thanksgiving celebrations became commonplace. New immigrants into the country—such as the Irish, Scottish, most of the US aspects of Thanksgiving, were incorporated when United Empire Loyalists began to flee from the United States during the American Revolution and settled in Canada. The 1621 Plymouth feast and thanksgiving was prompted by a good harvest, Pilgrims and Puritans who began emigrating from England in the 1620s and 1630s carried the tradition of Days of Fasting and Days of Thanksgiving with them to New England. In the land of Virginia shall be yearly and perpetually kept holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God, now called Oktober Feesten, Leidens autumn thanksgiving celebration in 1617 was the occasion for sectarian disturbance that appears to have accelerated the pilgrims plans to emigrate to America. Later in Massachusetts, religious thanksgiving services were declared by civil leaders such as Governor Bradford, the practice of holding an annual harvest festival did not become a regular affair in New England until the late 1660s. Thanksgiving proclamations were made mostly by church leaders in New England up until 1682, during the revolutionary period, political influences affected the issuance of Thanksgiving proclamations. Various proclamations were made by governors, John Hancock, General George Washington. James Baker maintains, The American holidays true origin was the New England Calvinist Thanksgiving, never coupled with a Sabbath meeting, the Puritan observances were special days set aside during the week for thanksgiving and praise in response to Gods providence

5.
Grand Central Airport (California)
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Grand Central Airport, Glendale, California, also known as Grand Central Air Terminal, was an important facility for the growing Los Angeles suburb of Glendale in the 1920s. It was also a key element in the development of United States aviation, the terminal, located at 1310 Air Way, was built in 1928 and still exists, owned since 1997 by The Walt Disney Company as a part of its Grand Central Creative Campus. The location of the single concrete 3, 800-foot runway has been preserved, the concept for the airport probably began with Leslie Coombs Brand, a major figure in the settlement and economic growth of the Glendale area. He had purchased land on the slopes of Mount Verdugo overlooking the city. Just across the mostly dry Los Angeles River he could see the Griffith Park Aerodromes grass field, just three years later he decided to build his own grass airstrip below his mansion. He built his first hangar in 1916 and put together a fleet of planes, the only requirement was that guests had to arrive in their own planes and bring passengers. From this modest beginning, plans were soon hatched by local entrepreneurs to establish an airport with commercial possibilities a little further down below his field. Aerial view looking SE On February 22,1929 a terminal with a tower had been built. Designed by Henry L. Gogerty, the intention was to construct an air terminal along the lines of a railroad terminal. It combined a style consisting of Spanish Colonial Revival with Zig-zag Moderne influences, GCAT became a major airport of entry to Los Angeles and provided the first paved runway west of the Rocky Mountains. Within a year, the enterprise was sold to a group calling itself the Curtiss-Wright Flying Service. Moseley, a co-founder of the future Western Airlines and it became the citys largest employer. It was also at Grand Central that Major Moseley established the first of his private flying schools, Amelia Earhart used the airport and bought her first plane there. Laura Ingalls became the first woman to fly solo across the country when she landed at Glendale in 1930, albert Forsythe and Charles Anderson were the first African American pilots who made the transcontinental flight, completed at Glendale in 1933. Their achievement paved the way for the black Tuskegee Airmen who fought in World War II, thomas Benton Slate built an all-metal dirigible and hangar in 1925. It was 212 ft. long, and supposedly fireproof and he named it City of Glendale, and it left the ground briefly in 1929, popped some rivets, and crashed. Howard Hughes built his record-setting H-1 Racer in a building at 911 Air Way in 1935. The building burned to the ground in the late 1990s, jack Northrop started his Avion Aviation company on the field in 1927, where he built multi-cellular metal structures

6.
Walt Disney
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Walter Elias Walt Disney was an American entrepreneur, animator, voice actor and film producer. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons, as a film producer, Disney holds the record for most Academy Awards earned by an individual, having won 22 Oscars from 59 nominations. He was presented with two Golden Globe Special Achievement Awards and an Emmy Award, among other honors, several of his films are included in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. Born in Chicago in 1901, Disney developed an early interest in drawing and he took art classes as a boy and got a job as a commercial illustrator at the age of 18. He moved to California in the early 1920s and set up the Disney Brothers Studio with his brother Roy, with Ub Iwerks, Walt developed the character Mickey Mouse in 1928, his first highly popular success, he also provided the voice for his creation in the early years. As the studio grew, Disney became more adventurous, introducing synchronized sound, full-color three-strip Technicolor, feature-length cartoons, the results, seen in features such as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Fantasia, Pinocchio, Dumbo and Bambi, furthered the development of animated film. New animated and live-action films followed after World War II, including the critically successful Cinderella and Mary Poppins, in the 1950s, Disney expanded into the amusement park industry, and in 1955 he opened Disneyland. In 1965, he began development of theme park, Disney World, the heart of which was to be a new type of city. Disney was a smoker throughout his life, and died of lung cancer in December 1966 before either the park or the EPCOT project were completed. Disney was a shy, self-deprecating and insecure man in private and he had high standards and high expectations of those with whom he worked. Although there have been accusations that he was racist or anti-semitic and his reputation changed in the years after his death, from a purveyor of homely patriotic values to a representative of American imperialism. Nevertheless, Disney is considered an icon, particularly in the United States. Walt Disney was born on December 5,1901, at 1249 Tripp Avenue and he was the fourth son of Elias Disney‍—‌born in the Province of Canada, to Irish parents‍—‌and Flora, an American of German and English descent. Aside from Disney, Elias and Calls sons were Herbert, Raymond and Roy, in 1906, when Disney was four, the family moved to a farm in Marceline, Missouri, where his uncle Robert had just purchased land. In Marceline, Disney developed his interest in drawing when he was paid to draw the horse of a neighborhood doctor. Elias was a subscriber to the Appeal to Reason newspaper, Disney also began to develop an ability to work with watercolors and crayons. He lived near the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway line and he and his younger sister Ruth started school at the same time at the Park School in Marceline in late 1909. In 1911, the Disneys moved to Kansas City, Missouri, before long, he was spending more time at the Pfeiffers house than at home

7.
Los Feliz, Los Angeles
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Los Feliz is a hillside neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California, abutting Hollywood and encompassing part of the Santa Monica Mountains. The neighborhood is named after its colonial Spanish-Mexican land grantee, José Vicente Feliz, according to the Mapping L. A. project of the Los Angeles Times, Los Feliz is part of Central Los Angeles. The 2000 U. S. census counted 35,238 residents in the 2. 61-square-mile neighborhood—an average of 13,512 people per square mile, in 2008 the city estimated that the population had increased to 36,933. The median age for residents was 36, older than in the city as a whole, the neighborhood was highly diverse ethnically. The breakdown was whites,57. 6%, Latinos,18. 7%, Asians,13. 5%, blacks,3. 7%, and others,6. 6%. Armenia and Mexico were the most common places of birth for the 44. 5% of the residents who were born abroad, a high ratio compared to the rest of Los Angeles. The median yearly income in 2008 dollars was $50,793, about the same as the rest of Los Angeles. The average household size of two people was low for the city of Los Angeles, renters occupied 75. 5% of the housing stock, and house or apartment owners the rest. The percentages of never-married men and never-married women were among the countys highest, the area north of Los Feliz Boulevard below Griffith Park is commonly referred to as the Los Feliz Hills. The Los Feliz Hills contain multimillion-dollar homes and have known for the large share of their inhabitants being involved in creative pursuits. With a mean income of $196,585, the hills are one of the wealthiest areas of Los Angeles. Long before the Spanish settlers arrived to settle near the banks of the Los Angeles River and it is estimated that the first Native Americans came to the area approximately 10,000 years ago. The Native Americans established villages, known as rancherias, throughout the countryside, one of these settlements was within the boundaries of what was to become Rancho Los Feliz. Archeological surveys have found evidence of a substantial rancheria that existed in the mouth of Fern Dell Canyon in Griffith Park, the traditional name of this village is not known, but the inhabitants were Gabrielinos. This name was given by the Spanish because of the Native Americans association with the San Gabriel Mission, when Gaspar de Portola traveled through the vicinity in 1769, his expedition encountered members of this village. The 6, 647-acre Rancho Los Feliz, one of the first land grants in California, was granted to Corporal José Vicente Feliz, an old adobe house built in the 1830s by his heirs still stands on Crystal Springs Drive in Griffith Park. Other sections of the rancho were developed and became the communities of Los Feliz, Rancho Los Feliz had a succession of owners after the Feliz family. One owner, Griffith J. Griffith, donated half of the ranch to the city of Los Angeles

8.
Universal Pictures
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Universal Pictures is an American film studio owned by Comcast through the Universal Filmed Entertainment Group division of its wholly owned subsidiary NBCUniversal. The company was founded in 1912 by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley and its studios are located in Universal City, California, and its corporate offices are located in New York City. Universal Pictures is a member of the Motion Picture Association of America and is one of Hollywoods Big Six studios. Universal Studios was founded by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, Robert H. Cochrane, one story has Laemmle watching a box office for hours, counting patrons and calculating the days takings. Within weeks of his Chicago trip, Laemmle gave up dry goods to buy the first several nickelodeons, for Laemmle and other such entrepreneurs, the creation in 1908 of the Edison-backed Motion Picture Trust meant that exhibitors were expected to pay fees for Trust-produced films they showed. Soon, Laemmle and other disgruntled nickelodeon owners decided to avoid paying Edison by producing their own pictures, in June 1909, Laemmle started the Yankee Film Company with partners Abe Stern and Julius Stern. Laemmle broke with Edisons custom of refusing to give billing and screen credits to performers, by naming the movie stars, he attracted many of the leading players of the time, contributing to the creation of the star system. In 1910, he promoted Florence Lawrence, formerly known as The Biograph Girl, the Universal Film Manufacturing Company was incorporated in New York on April 30,1912. Laemmle, who emerged as president in July 1912, was the figure in the partnership with Dintenfass, Baumann, Kessel, Powers, Swanson, Horsley. Eventually all would be out by Laemmle. Following the westward trend of the industry, by the end of 1912 the company was focusing its efforts in the Hollywood area. On March 15,1915, Laemmle opened the worlds largest motion picture production facility, Universal City Studios, studio management became the third facet of Universals operations, with the studio incorporated as a distinct subsidiary organization. Unlike other movie moguls, Laemmle opened his studio to tourists, Universal became the largest studio in Hollywood, and remained so for a decade. However, it sought an audience mostly in towns, producing mostly inexpensive melodramas, westerns. In its early years Universal released three brands of feature films — Red Feather, low-budget programmers, Bluebird, more ambitious productions, and Jewel, their prestige motion pictures. Directors included Jack Conway, John Ford, Rex Ingram, Robert Z. Leonard, George Marshall and Lois Weber, despite Laemmles role as an innovator, he was an extremely cautious studio chief. Unlike rivals Adolph Zukor, William Fox, and Marcus Loew and he also financed all of his own films, refusing to take on debt. Character actor Lon Chaney became a card for Universal in the 1920s

9.
Disney California Adventure
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Disney California Adventure Park, commonly referred to as Disney California Adventure, California Adventure, or DCA, is a theme park located in Anaheim, California. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, the 72-acre park is themed after the history and culture of California. The park opened in 2001 as Disneys California Adventure Park, the concept of a theme park dedicated to California arose from a meeting of Disney executives in 1995, following the cancellation of the WestCOT project. Construction of the began in 1998 and was completed by early 2001. Disney spent the several years incrementally adding new rides, shows, and attractions. In 2007, Disney announced an expansion of the park as well as a major overhaul of a significant portion of the park. Construction lasted for five years and was completed in stages, culminating with the opening of Buena Vista Street, according to the Themed Entertainment Association, the park hosted approximately 9.4 million guests in 2015, making it the 11th-most visited theme park in the world that year. In front of the Sun Icon of the former Sunshine Plaza, To all who believe in the power of dreams, Disneys California Adventure opens its golden gates to you. Here we pay tribute to the dreamers of the past, the people, explorers, immigrants. And we salute a new generation of dreamers who are creating the wonders of tomorrow, from the screen to the computer screen. Disneys California Adventure celebrates the richness and the diversity of California and its land, its people, its spirit and, above all, the dreams that it continues to inspire. On the plaque of the flagpole in Buena Vista Plaza on Buena Vista Street, To all who come to place of dreams. This unique place embraces the richness and diversity of California and its land, its people, its stories and, above all, the dreamers it continues to inspire. In front of the Sun Icon of the current Sunshine Plaza while On the plaque of the flagpole in Buena Vista Plaza on Buena Vista Street, To all who believe in the power of dreams, Disneys California Adventure opens its golden gates to you. Here we pay tribute to the dreamers of the past, the people, explorers, immigrants. And we salute a new generation of dreamers who are creating the wonders of tomorrow, from the screen to the computer screen. Disneys California Adventure celebrates the richness and the diversity of California and its land, its people, its spirit and, above all, the dreams that it continues to inspire while To all who come to this place of dreams, welcome. This unique place embraces the richness and diversity of California and its land, its people, its stories and, above all, the dreamers it continues to inspire

10.
Silver Lake, Los Angeles
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Silver Lake is a residential and commercial neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Originally named Ivanhoe in the 1900s by a resident from Scotland, the Silver in Silver Lake is not because of the waters color, but named for a local politician who helped create the reservoir. The area is known for its restaurants and clubs, and many people have made their homes there. The neighborhood has public and private schools. The prime real estate around the lake is known by realtors as the Moreno Highlands, the Silver Lake neighborhood council has mapped the boundaries of its council region. During the 1930s, Walt Disney built his first large studio in Silver Lake at the corner of Griffith Park Boulevard and Hyperion Avenue, currently the site of Gelsons Market. As consequence, the name Hyperion is used by Walt Disney Company, with company entities carrying the name, such as Hyperion Books, several blocks away on Glendale Boulevard was the studio of Tom Mix. The location is now occupied by the Mixville shopping center and it is rumored that Mix buried his steed Tony, the Wonder Horse on the property. The neighborhood is crisscrossed by numerous municipal staircases that provide access up. Among these are the Descanso Stairs, Redcliffe Stairs and the Music Box Stairs, the famous flight of stairs in Laurel and Hardys film The Music Box are located between lower Descanso Drive and Vendome Street, as it winds up and around the hill. In the 1950s and 60s Silver Lake, like Echo Park, was home to a middle class Latino community, the community was formed by Latinos who worked in the then-bustling manufacturing hub of downtown Los Angeles. In the 1970s, outsourcing brought to an end the prosperity of this group, as saw their jobs shipped overseas to Taiwan. The neighborhood lost its prominence amid urban decay, beginning in the 1970s, the Silver Lake neighborhood became the nexus of Los Angeles gay leather subculture, the equivalent of the SoMA neighborhood in San Francisco. As of 2013, Silver Lake is represented by Los Angeles City Council Members Mitch OFarrell and Tom LaBonge, the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council was formed in the early 2000s and certified as part of the City of Los Angeles Neighborhood Council system in February,2003. Its 21-member Governing Board is elected for terms in September. The Silver Lake Residents Association, Silver Lake Improvement Association, Silver Lake Reservoirs Conservancy, and this is one of ten that still remain in Los Angeles. In the community of Silver Lake lies the namesake reservoir composed of two basins, with the lower named Silver Lake and the upper named Ivanhoe, the lower body of water was named in 1906 for Herman Silver, and in turn lends its name to the neighborhood. The upper body received its name after the 1819 Sir Walter Scott novel Ivanhoe, at capacity, they hold 795 million gallons of water